The Duchess

"The Duchess is a woman of independent inclinations. Her opinions do not always align with those of the great and the good."

"A lady of style, grace and refinement, whose salons may be the best-attended in Fallen London. Just don't ask about her peculiar diet. Or her name. Or her association with the city's cats. Or her past. Actually, best not to say anything, just nod and drink her lovely tea. It is very lovely tea."

The Court of Cats was an Exceptional Story about the Duchess's royal kitties.

The Duchess is a survivor of the fall of the Second City - in fact, she orchestrated its fall to save her lover. She's an archetypical crazy cat lady, though she is also very intelligent and appreciates scholarly endeavors. And she has secrets...

While investigating a murder mystery at the University...

...one uncovers the backstory of the Duchess: she was a princess of the Second City (El-Amarna in Egypt), and that's why she loves her (talking!) cats so much - Egyptians worshipped their cats. (After some research, I've concluded that her Egyptian name is Ankhesenamun.) She arranged the fall of the city to save her half-brother/fiance, King Tut, who eventually became the Cantigaster after he lost favor with the Masters. And why does she look British? Consider this snippet from the storyline... "Lights appear from behind you. You duck behind a firkin of madeira and observe. A woman passes you. She is dressed in a simple white linen shift and about twenty pounds of gold jewellery. She is dark-skinned: African, perhaps. There's something familiar about her, though. Good God! It's the Duchess! Freed from her paints and powders, she is much darker. And younger! She looks barely thirty. It's definitely her, though, cat-earrings and all. The Duchess uses a great bronze key to open the door that defeated you. She slips inside. You peer past the hinges. The room beyond contains the Cantigaster. You can see immediately that the Cantigaster was once a man. Now he is a living, shuddering sac of poison. His flesh swells green and soft like rotting fruit. Foul venoms ooze beneath his skin. The Duchess kisses him fondly and they embrace. You watch as the Duchess... as she milks the poison from his skin. The Cantigaster sighs with relief as his venoms trickle into a stone bucket. The Duchess looks up. Has she seen you? You flee the cellar."